On Broken Wings
by Gakorogirl
Summary: Tamara, a blind girl living in Ninjago City, reads the wind. Charlotte is the daughter of the Nightmare King, and the darkness is consuming her from inside. Aurora ran away three times. Cindy's parents say she's perfect, if only she would smile. When there's a shadow in your heart and a laugh on your lips, you feel like you are drowning.
1. Dreams and Darkness

My name is Tamara.

People feel sorry for me because I live in a dark world and my eyes shine like frost, but do not see. It's not so bad, I say.

My hands see. My fingers sing.

In my dreams I can see. Not long before my life changed forever, I had a very vivid dream.

I was walking on green moss in the spring sun, and birds sang around me. _Green._ Suddenly, I came across a little pool. Even though it was warm, the pool was frozen, and it turned into a mirror so I could see my own reflection. I named colors in my reflection: light blue ragged jeans, storm-grey hoodie, sunlight-blond hair in a long plait down my back-

But I could not see the true color of my eyes, for they were misted over with a grey frost. Something moved behind me and I turned to see who it was, but then my real, sightless eyes opened and the darkness came crashing in.

For once, I missed my sight.

Remember when I said my life changed forever the next day? It started when I walked past the Ninjago City Bank a few days after my 14th birthday. I had just escaped my "Auntie" (not really my aunt) Minerva and was hurrying down the street to get away from her. It's not so hard for me to move around as you think. Everything moving makes ripples in the wind, even if it is otherwise silent. I could hear Minerva calling behind me.

"Darling Tami, I know you must be very scared but Auntie will come and get you if you just stay still and then we can have treats!"

I probably shouldn't have told my doctor about hearing people's voices through the wind. I probably shouldn't have told him that every night, I dream I can fly. Every night I leave the world behind.

He didn't believe that the wind had broken through my window one night last year when I had a fever, spraying me with shards of glass. He didn't believe that I was asleep when I climbed onto the roof of our apartment in a hurricane and woke up on the very edge of falling.

He wouldn't believe me if I said I knew he didn't believe me, if I said that I could read his face from the way the air ran over it and I heard speaking behind locked doors.

I dodged into an alley behind the bank and pulled my hood up all the way over my head. By running my fingers through the air, I was able to find a spot between the wall and a sheet of corrugated metal to squeeze into while Aunt Minerva hurried past. About then I heard the voices.


	2. Running

Charlotte

I run. I run through glittering marble hallways and duck through tapestries that aren't really there. Out of the corners of my eyes I see illusions, dancing nightmare-figures with eyes of flame.

It takes forever to reach my room. I lock the door and paint an ancient glyph against evil on the dark wood.

He won't come after me, though. He snarls. He lashes out. I run.

And the next morning we smile again through shattered mirrors and sleepless nights.

My name is Charlotte. My mother named me. She's been dead for a hundred years.

He calls me Morai. It is the ancient tongue, what he calls the true tongue. It means Thorn. Laying my face into my pillow, I feel like my mind is floating away. I see myself, laying facefirst on a cot in a room in a high tower. Like a princess in a fairy tale. But I'm no princess. And nobody will come to rescue me, because nobody would rescue a child who looked like me. Blue skin. Pointed bat-ears. Taloned hands. Only my eyes show that I could have been a human. A human, not the daughter of the Nightmare King. I need something to anchor me down, put me back into my own body. I dig my claws into my arm until blood begins the well up. For a moment, it works.

* * *

><p>Aurora<p>

There's a wolf howling outside. Why is there a wolf outside? Oh. Yeah. I ran away. Again.

They were yelling at each other, and something broke, and someone screamed. And I ran away. I always have a backpack ready to go, just in case. It's good to be prepared. "Hey." I tell the wolf as I stand up, baring my teeth at it. The wolf backs away, and I feel bad, so I pull half a piece of jerky out of my bag and toss it towards the animal, who catches it and runs away.

I realize that I'm in a graveyard. Huh. I don't have time to worry about some old bones. So I sit down under a tree and put my earbuds in and close my eyes. Maybe this time I'll be able to stay away. Maybe this time they'll notice that I'm gone. Maybe they might come and find me.

But I don't deal in maybes.

* * *

><p>Cindy<p>

I used to think that not being able to feel anything would be a good thing.

Back when my mom would yell at me when I cried. It's been three years since I cried, but it's not because I don't want to. It's because I can't. But I can- in the night, the tears come for no reason. And in the morning everything is darker than it should be. I still watch the sun rise, and when I have a moment away from my homework I sit by the creek in the forests. No one else ever goes into the forest- if you get lost in the Forest of Tranquility, you're gone forever.

Not being able to feel isn't a good thing. Not being able to hurt hurts more than anything I have ever known.

But the water is my friend, and the sun on the leaves. And if I walk deep enough into the forest, the aching goes away. I wish I could do it all the time, but I can't. I hate my parents, I think, but I can't run away. It would kill my father. So I study, and I win, and I bring the money home. And sometimes, I leave my room and walk into the woods and I cry until I think my tears are gone forever.

But they aren't.


	3. The Gathering Storm

_There's four voices. They sound like the voices of young men, only a few years older than I am. _

The first voice sounded like a boy about my age. There was a laughing quality behind the words, and the boy talked fast, like rain drumming against a window, or a tin roof.

"Don't be silly, Cole! Everyone wants to be a ninja!"

"Hey," a deeper, calmer voice retorted, "Sensei said bring back the ninja no matter what."

I decided that they must be muggers. The Ninjago City allies aren't a safe place for a teenaged girl. Even one who controls the wind.

A cool, flat voice sliced through the alley.

"I hope violence will not be necessary… Kai, what were the instructions?"

A new voice- _Kai_- "He said, the Ninjago City Alleys, high noon, find a ninja with eyes of mist."

Hyper Voice sniped, "Kai, are you sure you heard that right? Eyes of mist?" Cold Voice agreed. "It does seem rather illogical."

"Look, people I- wait, is there something over there? Zane, check it out."

I kept perfectly still behind the sheet of metal, ready to bolt. A clicking, humming noise filled the alley. Behind me, I heard some small animal make a frightened sound and scurry away..

"I have successfully scanned the alley. There does appear to be a life-form behind that metal."

"Come on! Let's go check it out!" This was from the deepest voice, probably the oldest.

As I felt the strangers coming towards me, I took a deep breath and bolted out of the alley. The wind rippled around me, giving me warning to dodge as one of the attackers pounced at me. I heard a rewarding grunt as the man rammed into a wall.

Suddenly, some kind of blade shot past me and hummed back over my head. I found myself skidding on a layer of ice. _It's high noon, and seventy degrees. Who are these guys?_

Right about then someone jumped me, and I fell and hit my head on the concrete. My skull jolted with pain and I assume I passed out.

* * *

><p>While I was unconscious, I had a new vision. I was hovering above the deck of a flying ship in the icy moonlight. It was cold, and I could feel that I was high up. Only my hands moved, flickering a pair of gleaming sun-golden fans. I looked up and saw a message written in ancient characters in the stars... Destiny. Repeated over and over again across the sky.<p>

"Um... hello? You awake? Sorry about all that... we all got carried away, I guess. It was a mistake-"

It was "Kai". I snapped my foot toward the sound and smashed him in the chest, feeling him stagger backwards. From the sounds of his footsteps, we were on wooden planking.

"Hey Kai, I think you made a bigger mistake than that- this is a girl!" yelled Hyper Voice. I kicked him too, realizing that these strangers must have mistaken me for a boy with my braided hair hidden inside my hoodie. Right about then, the voice of a girl cut in.

"Look, grey-girl. Try not to kick anyone while I explain what's going on. Take deep breaths, right? Okay. You are on board the Destiny's Bounty, which is a flying pirate ship. I'm only going to say that once, you can see it for yourself in a sec.

These crazy guys are the guardians of Ninjago, which is, yeah, not very reassuring. You fit instructions from our Sensei to find a new ninja to deal with a threat we have just discovered- some kind of... fog beast."

Cole muttered something that sounded like "Except that she's a girl!"

"I'm ignoring Cole right now. My name is Nya, and this is my brother Kai. Those are Cole, Jay, Zane, and that kid you see over there- he just climbed on deck- is Lloyd."

Awkwardly, I told Nya, "Actually, I'm blind. I can feel someone over there, but he's too far away to get details."

A long pause followed. Nya took a deep breath while Cole, Kai and Jay started snarling things at each other about how they had kidnapped the wrong kid. "Well," Cole announced, "we'll just have to find the kid tomorrow."

"That won't work- Sensei only saw were the new ninja was today and we blew it!" Jay yelped back.

The voice of an old man sliced through the air and I felt the planks beneath me quiver with footsteps.

"This is definitely the ninja I saw in the Spirit Smoke."

_Great. Now how am I getting away? _


	4. Training

"Yes, Sensei." four voices replied.

The old man spoke again, more gently, and I felt him place something into my hands.

"The last person who used these weapons… she put them aside. They were not her destined match, but perhaps they will work for you."

Suddenly, I saw a quick flash of light and color- golden fans, with the ancient language symbol for Wind on them in glittering silver jewels. Then the world went dark again. Bewildered, I slowly began to climb to my feet, feeling the edges of the metallic fans.

"I'll show you my room. I wasn't expecting a roommate, but there'll be enough room on the Bounty." Nya offered. I was thankful that she did not try to offer me a hand as I stood up.

"The Bounty?"

"That's the name of our airship- the Destiny's Bounty."

Destiny. Destiny. Destiny. A flying pirate ship.

Agitated, I fluttered the fans and felt a whoosh of gentle wind expand in all directions from around me. Curious, I lifted the fans again, sending an evenly spaced pulse of air across the ship. The wind bounced back to me, bringing a blurry image of Lloyd, Nya, the ninja, and the Sensei. Colorless, but sharper than what I had felt before. Amazing.

I followed Nya down a narrow flight of steps and into a small room. As I "watched" with my new echolocation powers, Nya set up a screen in the middle of the room and unfolded a small cot on my half. "Sorry about the cot- we'll stop in town and get something better tomorrow."

"So what kind of beast are we fighting?"

"Nobody knows. Something that preys on livestock when it's foggy out. Nobody ever sees it."

I heard the door open and Lloyd's voice reached me. "Uh, everyone is on the training deck. Maybe you should go up there and do more cool wind stuff. Could you fly? That would be awesome! What's your name?" "Tamara." I replied.

Nya shooed Lloyd out of the room. He didn't seem too happy, but I told him I would come get him if I had any intention of flying.

A few minutes later, I appeared in the training deck in a loose blouse and pants I had borrowed from Nya. (Author: the clothes were red, but Tamara wouldn't know that.)

Kai came over to me as I pulsed wind at the training equipment, weaving an image and memorising patterns of movement. "How's a blind girl going to maneuver this course? Why even I couldn't-"

"_Watch me._" I snarled at the irritating ninja, and launched myself forward.

"Whoa, lady!" barked Cole as he leapt out of the way while I hurtled through the spinning weights. Jay yelped and scrambled out of the way, dodging a powerful wash of wind from my fans that swept away an arrow I had felt coming towards me. I rolled across the deck and jumped to my feet, breathing heavily. I'd never felt more _aware. _

"Beginner's luck." Kai sniffed. I heard a blade being drawn and smelled and heard crackling fire.

_Fire needs air. _ I thought. Focusing all of my powers on the Cyclone Fans, I slowly flickered them backwards. The fire of Kai's sword spluttered and died as the air was pulled from it, and I heard the ninja choking. I relaxed my fans, sweeping a short gust of air back towards Kai for good measure. _Hope I didn't hurt him. _

"Guys!" Nya shrieked, running in from another door leading off the deck. "The fog beast appered in Jamakai Village, but it just vanished again and the villagers don't even know which direction!"

"Uh-" Lloyd piped up unexpectedly as the ninja sprang to their feet.. "I bet my friend Somnus and his sister could find it."

"Somnus?" Zane asked.

"Oh, um, I know Somnus from Darkley's. His sister came by once, so I sort of know her. The're the kids of Gahrann the Dreamer and they have visions and shadow-walking powers."


	5. Fog and Prophecies

"Well," Cole shrugged, "it's the only lead we have. Tamara can ride in Jay's storm jet and-"

I turned towards his voice. "Storm jet? What is a storm jet?" Zane explained as he turned off the training equipment, "We each have a vehicle created from the vast energy stores within the golden weapons. Jay's vehicle happens to be, rather predictably, a jet."

"Oh. But I should have one too, right?

There was a long pause. Apparently no one had yet considered this variable.

I pictured different vehicles. A jet did sound good- the fan blades in my hands began to quiver and sing. I could feel streams of energy shooting from the edges of the fans as I raised them above my head, and in my mind I could feel the shape of a small, sleek fighter jet, still surrounded by an aura of elemental energy, hovering just off the deck of the Bounty.

"That looks faster than yours, Jay." Kai muttered. I heard Jay's nunckucks power up behind me with an electric hum and Kai shut up.

It didn't take long to get to Darkley's. Somehow, being blind didn't hurt my flying at all- as soon as I got into the sky, untethered, I could feel everything. Below us, I sensed the other ninja, but I didn't know which one was which. A tank... I guessed Cole. A snowspeeder- Zane. And that meant Kai had the motorbike.

I flew slightly behind Jay's jet to make him feel better... even though I could sense that my jet would be much faster if I gave it the energy it craved.

When we touched down at Darkley's, Lloyd ran inside the gate and started talking to someone while the ninja waited on top of the wall. I loitered around, causally firing wind pulses to get a picture of the kids in the yard. I stopped when I felt some of the boys looking around for the source of the chilly bursts and pulling their chins into their collars to avoid the blasts. The boy Lloyd was talking to was probably seven or eight, with hooded eyes mostly covered by shaggy hair.

Eventually, he came out after Lloyd, hands in his pockets.

"I'm Somnus. I'm not really powerful, you might want to talk to my sister." His voice sounded too deep and smooth to come from a boy his age, but also vaguely sleepy. Through the unnerving richness, I thought I detected a note of trepidation.

Kai snapped impatiently, "We don't have time to get your sister!"

"But she's already here."

I detected a strange energy ripple, and the next second I detected a slender girl- at least I thought it was a girl. Short hair, only as long as Somnus'. Similar hooded eyes in a childlike face. And long, broad ears that reached up above her head, flickering and turning like a bat's.

I heard Somnus' voice again. "Charlotte, the ninja need to find the fog beast. Should we help them?"

_"Non opporet invenire- veniet ad nos." _Charlotte's voice, like Somnus', was oddly melodious and deep, with a slight echoing quality as she spoke.

Zane translated, "We don't need to find it- it's coming... _here_. What do you mean, Charlotte?"

I could feel the fog as it rolled in, cool and moist against my face, muffling my airsight. Behind me, the Darkley's boys yelled and fumbled around. "I think I see it!" Jay called, his footsteps pounding past me. _Thud! _A second later, I heard the lighting ninja hit a wall. "I _really_ think I see it!" Kai yelled, and I felt a blast of flame shoot past me. "Good work, Kai! That cleared the air!" Zane said from behind me. Kai's sword whipped through the air, but I heard him trip over someone- Somnus, perhaps?- and stumble to the ground.

The fog beast came closer, breathing heavily. Its footsteps made the ground quiver as it approached.

_"Enough."_ I snarled, raising my fans. A strong sheet of air rushed out of the blades and I sensed the fog roll away, the sun shining warm on my face. "It's gone." Zane murmured.

"What just happened?" Charlotte asked. Her voice had lost the echoing, slightly sibilant quality it had possessed earlier. "You made a prophecy or something,and then the fog monster came." Jay yipped. He really did remind me of a small dog. I could feel the lightning ninja hopping on the spot with excitement.

"Oh." The girl sounded a little worried now. "I'd like to help you, but I- I can't. Somnus, you help them."

I felt the slim child run out the gate and then Cole gasped, "Whoa. She just disappeared!"

"Don't be ridiculous," Kai griped. "People can't disa- wait, she is gone. Zane, what just happened?"


	6. Kingdom of Nightmares

Once we were back on the deck of the Destiny's Bounty, Somnus tried to have a vision. It involved a lot of chanting in various ancient languages which eventually tapered off.

Jay: "Dudes, I think he's asleep." I carefully edged up to him and poked him with the edge of the Cyclone Fans.

"Aaargh- what- oh. I think- maybe we should look in the marshes?"

Cole spoke, and I could feel the scowl in his voice."This is useless. It's obvious this kid didn't see anything." Zane: "But the marshes of Ninjago, near where the Fangpyre were released, would be a perfect place to search for a fog monster." "But Zane, we already looked there!"

I shrugged. "Let's look again- while some of us go find Charlotte."

"Okay." Nya said. "Tamara and I will go look for Charlotte. Somnus can come with us too. Everyone else should go check out the marshes and see if we can find the fog beast."

* * *

><p>After the ninja transformed their elemental vehicles and zoomed westward to the marshes, Nya grabbed my arm and pulled me down the steps. "Look, no one else can know about this, but-" She pulled a box from under her bed and opened it. Inside, I spun a web of wind and detected a samurai helmet and some armor. An embossed phoenix design marked each piece. "The symbol is the Phoenix Rising- it symbolizes strength, justice, rebirth, and of course fire." Nya explained. Outside I heard Somnus banging on the door, yelling, "What's going on?"<p>

"We're almost ready!" I called. Nya pulled some clothes out of a closet. "I found these in the same chest that sensei keeps the Green Ninja suit in for when we discover the identity of the true Green Ninja. The're silver and just your size. We shouldn't take them out, probably, but this is a little bit of an emergency, right?"

A few minutes later, Nya and I picked up Somnus. "Whoa, Nya, what's that armor?" he asked. "Uh- this is just some spare armor I like to have around in case of emergencies. And, uh, Sensei let me use a - a - jetmech. Look, here it is."

I felt something huge in front of me, making the planks of the deck dip under it's weight. The Samurai Mech.

Somnus murmured, "Charlotte should be at home. Father probably won't be there, though- he never stays in one place for long."

"Gahran the Dreamer? The nightmare king? What do we do if he _is _there?"

"We run like heck the other way." "That's comforting." I grumbled.

Nya's mech grabbed Somnus in its claws and took off into the air. I flickered my fans and followed, choosing to swoop through the sky rather than ride my wind jet. It took nearly an hour to reach the fortress of dreams, and when we touched down I heard Somnus crumple and dig his fingers into the soil, breathing heavily. When the boy recovered, he led us into a small side door of the fortress. "Wow." I said, sending out a web of wind to orient myself. Sculptures, chimes, and bizzare weapons surrounded us. I followed Nya, now out of her mech, and Somnus through the winding halls.

* * *

><p><strong>Somnus<strong>

I stepped back into the halls that I had not frequented for years. The hypnotic blue swirls on the marble floor shimmered as I walked across them, responding to my footsteps. Paintings of my father, lithe, blue-skinned, with insect-dark eyes and a horned crown, studded the passageways. I knew I should betray Nya and Tamara like we had been taught at Darkley's, but I couldn't bring myself to. I couldn't even let them down by telling them that I had no powers. Keeping a sharp eye out for Charlotte or my father, I led Nya and Tamara up a winding flight of stairs that flickered in and out of reality. Soft chimes floated through the air as I stuck my head cautiously into my sister's room.

There she was, dressed in jeans and a purple t-shirt. Even with her causal clothes and short-chopped black hair, Charlotte radiated an ancient aura that I would never posess. Her luminous eyes snapped open and she climbed to her feet, grabbing a short dagger from the table beside her bed. I marveled at how there were no magical artifacts or essence of power prevalent throughout the fortress in Charlotte's room- like she never wanted to remember what she was ever again. I would give anything to have her powers... she would give anything not to. I noticed that there was a sign against evil painted messily on the door.

It looked like it had been painted on in blood.


	7. Shadow of Dreaming

I could feel the girl who had been sitting on the bed recoiling and the hiss of metal as she whipped a knife out of its sheath. "I-I can't help you. Now go, before, before I _make_ you!" Her voice vas frightened.

"Come with us." I said softly. "We can help you control your power."

"Are you saying my powers aren't under control!? Of course I can control them!" I felt her fear, and energy boiling over.

"No." I said, taking a cautious step forward, prepared to leap out of the way if she attacked with the knife. She didn't seem the sort who would _want _to stab someone. I could smell a slight tang of blood in the air, but I was almost positive that it was her own.

"You do not control your powers." I said, voice level. :You suppress them, but once they are unleashed, they control _you._"

* * *

><p><strong>Nya<strong>

I watched Tamara confront the dark-haired girl, who was obviously unnerved by the confidence of this blind ninja. In some corner of my mind, I was also kind of amazed how well the silver ninja clothes fit Tamara.

Suddenly, Charlotte stiffened, head jerking backwards. Her luminous brown eyes flared violet, and he voice echoed as she whispered, "_Serpens rediit in caelo, ad montes aureos. Si persequeris eum, finiet in sanguine"_

Taking a deep breath, Somnus translated.

_"The cloud serpent returns to the sky, to the _Montes Aureos. _If you follow him it shall end in blood."_

_"_Montes Aureos?" I asked as Charlotte crumpled onto the bed. "Golden mountai- oh! Of course! The Golden Peaks!" Somnus replied as he steadied Charlotte.

Just then, the main doors to the fortress boomed open, echoing up to the very top of the tower. Charlotte sat up and yelped, "Run!" as screaming winds began to whip through the castle. And they weren't Tamara's winds- they were screaming with human voices. I grabbed Somnus and yanked open a window, pulling him over the sill as I summoned my Samurai Mech. As the mech appeared, swooping up towards us, Charlotte and Tamara climbed on after us.

The Samurai mech swooped in and gathered the four of us in its claws. As we were carried away, I saw the horned silhouette of Gahrann in the still-open window.


	8. The Legend Revealed

Charlotte

I closed my eyes tightly as the huge mech soared through the air. Shadow-walking was not as terrifying as this untethered flight- faster, and of course much darker, but not as terrifying. But deep inside, something was rising up the farther we flew from the castle.

I dared to think that it might be hope.

As we landed on the ninja's flying ship - _the Denstiny's Bounty- _someone's voice crackled through the speakers. "Nya? Nya?" "Yeah, I'm here, Jay." The samurai-girl answered mildly, taking off her armor.

"Can you drop the anchor for the other guys? I'm coming up right now. Well, not up... haha! I'm already at the level of the Destiny's Bounty!" Nya walked over and dropped the anchor as I watched a bright blue jet, crackling with energy, come soaring in. Suddenly, it dissipated in a sizzle of blue light and all I saw was Jay, holding an unconscious dark-skinned girl with bright purple hair, a pink T-shirt, tattered jeans and combat boots. At the same time, the other ninja climbed onto the deck.

"Who's that?" Nya asked. The blind girl flickered her golden fans, weaving an invisible pattern as Cole stepped forward and answered.

"Some crazy girl we found in the swamp. Tried to set a pack of killer fox-things on us. We called Sensei and he told us to bring her along, so Jay zapped her with the tazer sticks."

Jay hissed, "_Tazer sticks? _I'll give you Tazer Sticks you _absolute dirtclod!_" Cole chuckled under his breath.

"Please, don't fight, we have VISITORS!" The ice ninja yelled the last word, which finally caused Jay and Cole to stop glaring at each other and turn to him in shock.

* * *

><p><strong>Tamara<strong>

Everyone fell silent as Zane yelled.

_"Whoa, _dude." Jay said. I couldn't tell if he was amused or angry, or both, and my airsight didn't have enough clarity to accurately gauge his facial expression. Charlotte's footsteps made the planks quiver slightly, and I felt them go over to where Jay and the unconscious girl were. With my airsight, I could watch Charlotte pass her hand over the girl's head, then snap her fingers. The girl jerked and woke up, clambering to her feet. I hopped into the air, relaxing as soon as I entered my element, and swooped around the girl, watching her closely. "Who are you?' I asked. The strange girl turned and glared at me.

"Before I answer that, who are all of _you_?"

Introductions took a little while, but Sensei convinced the girl to call off the crazed ravens and agree to train on the Bounty. Jay and Nya went downstairs to go try and expand Nya's room to fit Charlotte and the new girl, who said her name was Aurora.

Sensei climbed down the ladder and reappeared a few seconds later. I could sense that he was tense, and my wind-vision picked up something long and thin in his hand.

"I found this scroll from Misa- from the storage area in the Destiny's Bounty." he said. Aurora moved a little closer, her footsteps sounded different from the others, lighter and looser, more like an animal's.

Sensei read:

_Cloud serpents descend on the land,_

_Are they good or evil?_

_Shadow for the finding,_

_Water for the trap,_

_Wind for revealing,_

_Nature will tame._

_Do not judge your enemy rashly._

__Just then, Nya docked the Bounty in the Mountains of Impossible Hight. "Surely this is near where our old dojo was?" Zane asked sadly.

"All my high scores on Fist-to-Face-2..." Kai grumbled. I heard a whack as someone smacked the Fire ninja.


	9. Mountain of Serpents

Nya landed the Bounty on a mountaintop, cutting the engines as the ship settled. "Look, you can't just _kidnap _people-"

The ground began to shake. I could feel the Serpentine as they exploded out of the ground, and Kai- or was it Jay- screamed. As I jumped into the air, my airsight instantly sharpening, something wet splattered against my face. It burned, and I swiped it off with my sleeve before diving down at the Serpentine. Someone behind me gasped.

* * *

><p><strong>Charlotte<strong>

Tamara was encased in a screaming sphere of wind, making it impossible for the Serpentine to approach her. Cole had disappeared down one of the tunnels and Kai and Jay were on the ground, incapacitated by the Venomari spray. One of the Serpentine- a silver-scaled Hypnobrai- headed towards me. In a rush of darkness, I transported myself behind the snake, slitting its throat with my dagger. Somehow, I sensed another one behind me. Focusing my powers, I cast the snake into a deep trance. The white ninja- Zane- was surrounded by Fangpyre. I was about to go help when Aurora jumped into the middle of the battle, carving a deadly ring around her with an axe she had clearly ripped from the training course. Her teeth were bared as she hissed, and her eyes flashed in her dark face. To be frank, she looked utterly insane, and the Serpentine backed off, slipping into their tunnels. Cole exploded from the ground, landing hard on the rock face of the mountain. Tamara landed slowly, and the winds whipping around the mountain eased.

"I guess- I guess our next job is to find the Water Ninja. Aurora- you must be Nature." Jay said after he cleared the venom from his eyes.

_Oh no. _I felt my body going rigid, and a voice that was not my own ripped through my throat.

* * *

><p><strong>Aurora<strong>

Charlotte stood rigid in the middle of the deck, muttering quietly in Latin. Zane, Tamara and Somnus all stood near her, obviously straining to catch her words. Finally, as Charlotte relaxed and the creepy glowing eyes faded, Zane said, "The final ninja is in the Forest of Tranquility, not far from where we camped on that nigt so long ago… but further from the Fire Temple, which seems logical if she is indeed a water ninja. I will go with Tamara, Charlotte, and Aurora and retrieve this ninja. Perhaps we should meet at the Golden Peaks?" Cole pondered this for a while. I couldn't see anything wrong with Zane's plan, but I also couldn't believe that Cole was just _letting_ the ice ninja dictate our movements. Wasn't the Earth Ninja leader of the team?

"Sure." Cole said finally. "Sounds like a plan."

Sensei Wu said, "I have found a new weapon within the same chest as the scrolls." He held out a mace and chain that gleamed silvery blue in the light, but when I tilted my head it shone golden. "The Forest Ax and the Blades of Night have been long lost. This is the Mace of the Oceans, the eighth and final golden weapon."

Charlotte's long ears flickered. "Well- I own the Blades of Night." She pulled two serrated knives out of her belt, the hilts golden but the blades made from a dark crystalline substance. I sort of remembered her using them in the battle. It was a shame I didn't get my own.

"I'm fine with this ax." I said, gripping the weapon I had ripped off one of the training obstacles.

Everyone gasped, and Tamara's fans started flickering faster than hummingbird wings. I looked down and saw that tendrils of gold were snaking across the ax from my hand, converting it into my own golden weapon.

"The ax - it must have been hidden here centuries ago." Zane marveled as I stared at the glistening metal.

"So what are we waiting for?" I asked, shifting my grip on the haft. It looked like finally I had found something I could do.


	10. Daughter of the Rain

**Aurora**

The girl was sitting by a waterfall, just as Charlotte said she had seen in the vision. She looked up and her eyes widened at the sight of the four of us coming towards her. I could see that she had long dark hair, a similar color to Charlotte's but in a long plait and with a streak of white winding down the side. Her eyes were blue.

Tamara, as always, knew exactly what to say. "We're here about your powers."

The girl's eyes widened and she raised her hand above her head. The stream responded, swirling into the air around her long fingers. I gripped the handle of my axe, ready for a fight, but the young girl simply lowered her hand and murmured,  
>"I knew you would come… I saw it in a dream. I've already told my parents goodbye, but they just laughed. They don't know what I can do…" Her words should have been bitter, but the way she said them was mild and even amused.<p>

It was unnerving. She should have been bitter. _I _would have been bitter. Heck, I _was _bitter.

She held up a bulging backpack- all she had packed to remember her home. It reminded me a little of my own.

"I'm sorry." Charlotte said. The girl looked at her and said gently, "It doesn't matter- let it be."  
>Kai seemed tense, turning in place with his hands on his sword hilt. Suddenly, he called, "I can see Fangpyre- they're coming this way!" I gripped my axe and howled for my wolves, feeling the presence of their minds getting closer as they ran. Charlotte raised her knives, glowing with power, and Tamara flipped into the air and hovered, with the Cyclone Fans humming.<p>

As the Fangpyre slithered into the clearing around the waterfall, the girl closed her eyes… and the river exploded, knocking the Serpentine over and drencing all of us. "Come on!" Charlotte yelled, turning towards the Bounty. We bolted, with the girl following us.

Back on the Bounty, the girl turned to us and said politely, "It's nice to meet you all- I'm Cindy."

The problem of the fog monster was rapidly explained, and Zane recited the prophecy.

Suddenly, Nya called, "We're here!"


	11. The Rising Night

**Charlotte**

I gazed out over the peaks.

"So.. which peak?" Jay asked.

"I don't know." "Well, could you have another vision?" someone asked.

I stepped back from the railing of the Bounty. "Look," I muttered. "You don't understand about shadow magic. It's evil. If I willingly use it, I'm afraid it could- it could consume me. Turn me into something like my father." Reflexively rubbing my arm, my talons started to slide out. "You know... completely."

It felt good to be able to _finally_ voice my fears.

Unexpectedly, the little boy- Lloyd- said, "I think you're wrong. Shadows aren't necessarily bad. And you're a good person, Charlotte…"

_Shadows aren't necessarily bad. _

_I'm a good person?_

Later, I would regret this, I was sure. But for now, that was all I needed to hear.

* * *

><p><strong>Cindy<strong>

Charlotte closed her eyes and the Blades of Night started to glow. Shadowy purple smoke started to stream from her hands, roiling over the deck of the Bounty, and her choppy hair lashed like a wind was blowing it as her feet slowly lifted off of the deck. I felt a flicker of amazement, and somehow I knew that the smoke was benign.

"She's uncovered her true potential!" someone gasped. I thought it might have been Zane.

Charlotte's eyes snapped open, glowing purple as the energy that was playing across her blue skin.

"It's in the highest mountain, near a stream that runs down from the peak. _Serpens expectat_." Breathing heavily, she landed back on the deck as her eyes changed back to brown.

"I believe she said that it is waiting for something, perhaps a new fog bank to roll into Ninjago." Zane translated. "The serpent waits."

Well then," I said, "Let's _make_ some fog!" Somnus nodded agreement beside me.

Kai grinned. "I guess fog is a form of water, so Cindy can do it... right?" I shrugged. _Can I?_ and gave my mace an experimental twirl. It felt good- the handle, heavy and smooth, seemed to warm when I gripped it. For the first time in a long time, something felt _right._

* * *

><p><strong>Zane<strong>

We stepped down from the Destiny's Bounty and halfway up the cliff. Not far in front of us rushed a fast mountain stream which looked shallow, although fast.

However, as I stepped up to it I could feel that it was much deeper and more treacherous than it appeared, cut deep into the rock of the mountain over centuries. Cindy, interestingly, was not exhibiting signs of anxiety on the outside, although I could sense how nervous she was. Her fingers tightened slightly on the handle of the mace.

Charlotte had recovered from the brief exhaustion after her successful use of her true potential, but flickers of violet lightning still played across her skin. Tamara hovered in the air above us, the Cyclone Fans stretched out to their full extent. The nature ninja Aurora was standing in front, and I worried that she was going to step into the tumultuous stream.


	12. The Storm and the Serpent

**Cindy**

"This is the place to set a trap- I can feel that our mystery beast has been here recently." Aurora told me in a bossy voice. I looked down at the turbulent stream and tentatively raised my mace. I had tried to control the water in the creek near my village, on the outskirts of the Forest of Tranquillity. This water was completely different.

_It doesn't matter- tell them you can't and they can send you home and find someone better. Why would they miss you?_ I told myself as the current failed to respond to my rythmic swing of the mace and chain.

Then, a little voice rose up inside me- a voice that I had been holding back for years. _THIS_ matters. You finally have friends. Something finally matters…

I raised my hands, and suddenly could feel every molecule of water on the mountain. A raw, wild feeling bubbled up inside me, and I felt my feet leave the ground. As a pale blue light shone from my skin, I said in a voice that was not my own,

"_FOG_."

The fog rose silently over the land.

* * *

><p><strong>Kai<strong>

Fog rolled over the land in a white blanket. In less than a minute, we were standing in pearly twilight. I growled- everyone was reaching their full potential _before_ me! I clutched the Dragon Sword of Fire and willed it to become hotter. The flames cleared a circle around me in the fog.

Suddenly, a smoky grey tail lashed out of the mist and smashed into my chest, sending me sprawling across the mountainside. Tamara flared out her fans and blasted away a ring of fog around her, but with a sibilant hiss, the cloud swirled back in around her. I saw eyes peering out of the mist, but I was too winded to make much of a sound.

* * *

><p><strong>Tamara<strong>

I could feel the fog roiling towards me. Kai grunted, but when I sent out a current of air to sense what was wrong, my winds were muffled by the water droplets in the air.

_What do I need? I need to SEE. _

I searched deep within my soul. _Who am I truly?_

Zane cried out, and I could hear metal buckling. The Nunchuks of Lightning crackled, the hum of Jay's trademark weapons drowned out by the bellowing of the fog beast.

_I am Tamara._

"Get down!" Charlotte called. "We're fighting blind!" Cole yelled, somewhere in the fog behind me.

_I do not need my sight. I am the Blind Ninja._

__A massive wave of silver wind energy roared out in all directions as the darkness cleared from my eyes. I floated in blinding sunlight, with th elast wisps of fog fading away. In front of me stood the pale grey bulk of the Fog Serpent. The creature was the size of a house, with damp scales, fins, and reptilian eyes. Wisps of pearly fog trickled beneath it's fangs. It seemed confused, or perhaps afraid. _I can... see? _Behind me, the shapes of my friends were beginning to stir. Then I landed back on the ground and was blind once more.


	13. Fog on the Mountains

**Aurora**

I ran forwards before the creature could recover and reform the fog, expecting it to attack, but it just stared at me and made a questioning warble. Was it going to attack? I raised my hand carefully, and the creature pushed its wet grey muzzle against my fingers. Fog dripped out from between its curving fangs. I caught images, feelings-

_He had lived on the shores of a vast subterranean lake with a few others like him. There were not many of them. He was the only child. In the silent, misty darkness, they preyed on the blind whales of the lake, and giant bats. One day, the ground shook and roared, opening up a long- sealed tunnel, and as the youngest and most inquisitive, he had gone through, only to find a world of dazzling sunlight and freezing winds that had made him frantic to return to the mist._

Suddenly, an echoing roar split the air and another fog serpent slithered into view, but this one was much bigger, with red eyes and curving fangs. "Where did _that_ come from?" Jay shrieked as it lunged forwards, fog roiling off of its mottled scales.

"The fog monster's... mommy..." I whispered.  
>The fog monster whimpered and darted behind its mother, who bellowed and swung her tail at Jay and Charlotte. The purple ninja jumped over the tail and shot dark fire at it. The monster shrieked and staggered back, its long tail whipping through the air wildly.<p>

"Do that again!" I yelled as Charlotte sprinted backwards, away from the fog monster's pounding claws.

* * *

><p><strong>Charlotte<strong>

"Are you _insane_?" I snapped, rolling away from the thrashing monster. "It'll get madder!" The monster shot a bolt of freezing fog at Tamara, who blocked it with her fans.

"_I'm_ the leader! DO IT!"

"Who made you leader?" Tamara called. There was a note of alarm in her voice that made me uneasy.

"I did!" Aurora called back. "It was my first act as leader!"

Tamara shot over to Aurora and said, "We will respect you as a leader... but sometimes you have to let it go. I have a plan..." The blind ninja whispered to Aurora, who reluctantly nodded. "You think it'll-"

"I read your emotions, earlier. I know what you need to do to heal. Just breathe." She began to speak more quietly as Cindy and I raced for cover. "Do you think you can distract it long enough for us to escape?" I asked her as she paused to breathe.

Suddenly, a blast of light spread across the mountain behind us, and there was a coppery dragon with purple spikes and Aurora's eyes standing where the nature ninja had been.

"What- what just happened?" she gasped, looking down at her claws.

The dragon lunged for the fog monster, forcing it backwards with puffs of smoke and a flurry of wings. I saw a crevice in the mountainside, and the Aurora-dragon was forcing the larger monster towards it. The smaller one was already mostly in the crack, warbling anxiously as it watched the battle.

* * *

><p><strong>Aurora<strong>

I felt firey power surging through my veins as I roared at the mother fog beast. I was a being of _power, _and _light. _And I was stronger than she. Hissing, both of the fog beasts backed into the cavern, their eyes glinting in the darkness.

"Seal the crack!" I roared. Cole and Kai raced up the slope, scrambling on the fallen rocks. Kai brandished the Sword of Fire to keep the fog monsters backing further into the cavern, and as Cole slammed the Scythe of Quakes into the ground, huge boulders toppled down the cliff, piling across the entrance to the cave system.

I relaxed, and felt myself shrinking back into a human. For a moment, I tried to grip my fire-energy, but then I let it leak away. _I have friends. People who care about me. More than that. Family._

"I guess we can go home now?" Jay said. Out of nowhere, Sensei Wu strolled up the mountain. "How- what- _SENSEI?" _I stuttered. Everyone else gaped- except for Tamara and Zane. I supposed they had sensed him coming.

"Not yet, my ninja. Charlotte, Cindy, Kai, Jay, Cole- please scout the mountain for other fog monsters. Zane, Aurora, and Tamara, come with me."


	14. Truth

**Tamara**

Sensei took us far to one side, our path winding across the mountain. There was birdsong, and the warm rays of the sun played across my face. I could hear the voices of the others drifting away from us. Suddenly, my foot slipped on a loose stone, which tumbled down the mountain behind us. I took a step back and focused on the vast reserves of raw power within me, and for a moment I could see.

It was the scene in my first dream. A pool of ice lay before me. Zane and Aurora were reflected behind me, and I could see my eyes were _green_. Amazed, I drew closer to the reflective pool, blinking the grey frost away from my eyes. _Green, _I thought. _The color of spring. Renewal. Power._ Then all was dark once more.

Sensei's voice reached my ears as I readjusted to the emptiness in front of my eyes.

"I have brought you here to tell you something. There is an ancient prophecy discovered by your predecessor, Tamara. She was an Archivist, traveling Ninjago to research the ancient legends. It states that one ninja will rise above the others and become the Green ninja. Then the remaining ninja must protect the Golden weapons _and _the chosen one. However, there are no words to state the importance of this task, and it was deemed wise to have another set of ninja...

Sensei continued, "If anything happens to one of the ninja, one of you must step in. Aurora, you can replace Cole as team leader. Cindy can replace Zane, Tamara replaces Jay, and Charlotte replaces Kai. Earth to Nature. Ice to Water. Lighting to Wind. And Fire to Darkness. Always it has been the way of the Balance."

Next to me, I felt Aurora's troubled energy. "We were only ever a _backup plan_?"

Zane said incredulously, "We are... _replaceable?_" I turned away and pondered, with the wind blowing in my face. It was comforting, and I listened.

_ Have faith, _the wind whispered. _This is your destiny. _In a quick moment my vision shone, even without effort on my part, and I could see the whole mountainside beneath us. Cindy and Kai were making their way up the slope, and the shy water ninja's pale brown ponytail had come loose and was whipping around her face. There was a broad smile on her face, and her arms were spread like wings in the wind. Beside her, Kai smiled almost as brightly- a rare occurrence.

Below them, Jay was telling Charlotte a joke, and the blue-skinned shadow ninja was laughing so hard that she began to float of the ground in a ripple of dark energy. Next to me, Aurora was spinning her elemental ax in a relaxed, casual arc of death, radiating power even through her wild purple hair and combat fatigues. Her eyes flashed in her dark face as she pondered Sensei's words. Beyond her was Zane, gazing up at a dark, circling shape in the sky- a falcon.

"We're more than a backup plan." I said. "We're part of the team."

**The story continues in _Wings of Hurricane, _coming Winter 2014!**


End file.
